Page 154 - Sports
India colts lose 1-3 in penalty shootout at Granatkin Memorial Tournament
Indian under-19 football team Tuesday suffered a 1-3 loss to Kyrgyzstan in penalty shootout in the 9-12th place play-off of the Granatkin Memorial Tournament at the Turbostroitel, St. Petersburg. Akash Mishra opened the scoreline for India at the 74th minute before Kyrgyz Republic midfielder Emir Sigaybaev (88') produced the late equaliser as both the teams ended the regulation time 1-1. In the penalty shoot-out, Harmanpreet Singh, Sailo Lalchhanhima and Jitendra Singh missed the target, while the Kyrgyz shooters were spot on to seal the fate of the game. India will now face the losers of the play-off match between Armenia and Tajikistan in their final play-off match to decide the 11th and 12th position of the competition. Ninthoi Meetei, who sat out owing to an aggravated injury from the last match, was replaced by Harmanpreet Singh upfront beside Rohit Danu in the starting lineup. India suffered an early setback having gone down to 10 men in the second minute. On a corner, Sumit ...
Mitchell Marsh added as backup in Australia's World Cup squad
All-rounder Mitchell Marsh is all set to join Australian World Cup squad as a backup for injured Marcus Stoinis.Stoinis suffered a side strain in the match against India and was ruled out of the match against Pakistan on Wednesday, Cricket.com.au reported.Stoinis leaked 62 runs against India and took two crucial wickets, including MS Dhoni's caught-and-bowled dismissal and he also had Virat Kohli caught in the deep by Pat Cummins.He failed to score runs and was bowled by Bhuvaneshwar Kumar for a duck on the second-ball. While in the tournament he has just scored 19 runs. Stoinis did not get a chance to bat against Afghanistan.The 29-year-old all-rounder has been the consistent member of the squad and has performed his duties well. He was the key member of the series winning Australian side against India.However, Stoinis has not been officially replaced in Australia's World Cup squad.As per the International Cricket Council (ICC) rules allow an injured player can be replaced, but he ...
Indian hockey's new mantra: Score early and create scoreboard pressure
With a new coach at the helm in Graham Reid, the Indian men's hockey team has been working on a new tactic to put pressure on the opposition -- create chances and score as many goals as possible early on. In the ongoing FIH Series Finals here, world no. 5 India have been scoring goals at will against weaker opponents but they would want this trend to continue against the best teams of the world as well. "One of the things I have spoken with the boys is that we will get 2-3 opportunities in the first five minutes and that will vary depending on which team you are playing. The idea is to make sure we use them," India's chief coach Reid said. "Something we always try to do is to create opportunities early on and put pressure on the opposition not just here but against top teams as well. "We are always wanting to score more goals but those things take time to get better. We are working with the strikers but I am happy that we are creating opportunities and that is very important," the ...
In-form Gaurika seeks back-to-back Hero WPG wins in Bengaluru
Gaurika Bishnoi will look to win back-to-back titles and cement her position at the top of the Hero Women's Pro Golf Tour's money ranking when she begins her campaign in the 8th leg of the event at the Prestige Golfshire course here Wednesday. The 32-player field is the largest ever in the history of the domestic Hero WPG Tour, surpassing the field of 29 at Clover greens last week. There are 27 professionals, one more than the 26 last week in the seventh leg and there are also five amateurs. The total prize will be the same as in the seventh leg at Rs.10 lakhs, only the second time, after last week, to have such a purse. "It is a testimony to the growing popularity of women's golf in India," said Kavita Singh, President of the WGAI. "There are more enquiries as more and more amateurs are taking the plunge and joining the pro ranks. It is a big boost and we feel we could reach a target of 45-50 in a year or so. Each week we are giving a lot of amateurs a taste of pro golf by giving ...
ICC hands players Sky subscription after logistical goof-up
The International Cricket Council (ICC) in a major goof-up in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales forgot to inform hotels booked for the 10 teams to subscribe to Sky so that players could watch other teams in action. This has now seen the ICC give the 10 teams Sky subscription vouchers so that players don't miss out on the cricketing action on the biggest stage.
Akhtar calls Yuvi most elegant India left-hander; was terrified of you, responds Yuvi
Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar believes Yuvraj Singh is the most elegant left-hander to have played cricket for India a day after the flamboyant all-rounder called time on his international career. In response, the Indian said Akhtar was the one bowler who terrified him the most in his playing days. Yuvraj brought the curtains down on a roller-coaster international career, during which he became the hero of India's 2011 World Cup triumph and fought a gritty battle with cancer. "A rock-star, a match winner, a great junior and a very good friend of mine," Akhtar said on his YouTube channel. "I don't think India has produced a more elegant left-handed batsman than Yuvraj Singh. He used to play very fluently," he added. Yuvraj, on his part, said he was always scared of facing the 'Rawalpindi Express'. "Trust me Everytime u ran into bowl at me it was terrifying ! Had to gather a lot of courage to face u. We had some great battles will always cherish those moments @shoaib100mph Shoaib .
Patel, Poojary post wins at senior national squash meet
Karan Patel, Divit Poojary of Maharashtraalong side Abhimanyu Pande of Madhya Pradeshand Arun Kumar of Services registeredclose wins to enter the fourth round qualifying in the men's eventat the MSRA 76th Senior National Squash Championship here. The tournament, organised by the Maharashtra Squash Racket Association (MSRA) under the aegis of the Squash Rackets Federation of India, is being played at various venues. In the third round, Patel scraped past Madhya Pradesh player Yashraj Bhargava 11-7, 8-11, 9-11, 11-8, 11-9, while Poojary gotthe better of Sachin Shinde 11-5, 11-7, 1-11, 11-8 in an all-Maharashtra affair. Madhya Pradesh player Pandegot past Gursimar Singh of Delhi 11-8, 11-8, 4-11, 1-11, 11-9 to register a close win, while Services playerArun Kumar struggledto get past Rajasthan's Prateek Gurnani 8-11,11-4, 13-11, 8-11, 11-4.
India should get Pant in WC squad early: Pietersen
Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen feels India should draft in Rishabh Pant as soon as possible in their World Cup squad, after opener Shikhar Dhawan was ruled out for three weeks with a thumb fracture.
TYKA becomes official kit partner for Euro T20 Slam
Sportswear and sports equipment brand TYKA has become an official kit partner for the Euro T20 Slam that is going to take place in The Netherlands, Scotland and Ireland from August 30.
A day after retiring, Yuvraj says he was 'terrified' of Shoaib Akhtar
Cricket matches between India and Pakistan have always been nail-biting, owing to the age-old rivalry between the two teams. However, the camaraderie of players from both countries is something that cannot be missed.Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh, who retired from all forms of cricket on Monday, took to Twitter to reveal that he was "terrified" whenever Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar bowled.Soon after Yuvraj announced his retirement, Akhtar created a video to bid adieu to the left-hander."Yuvraj is a rockstar, a match winner and a very good friend. When I saw him in 2003 in the World Cup match at Centurion, he played a very good knock and I always found him as an elegant batsman. He's a Punjabi and speaks our language," Akhtar had said on Monday."I remember that he used to play very fluently. Yuvi always knew a lot about cricket. Yuvraj has done wonders for his nation. He was an integral part of India's 2011 World Cup triumph and his six 6's against Stuart Broad will always be ...
India in Dhawan quandary as Kohli & Co await specialist's report
While everyone is talking about how India suffered a huge jolt with opener Shikhar Dhawan suffering a thumb fracture, the team management has a new dilemma. They are still not sure if they should rope in a replacement for the opening batsman. As per rules, if Dhawan is replaced by another player, he can no longer play a part in the tournament. The whole issue stems from the nature of Dhawan's injury.
India-UK Sports Alliance to encourage greater bilateral trade
The UK government on Tuesday brought together business leaders from high-profile sporting companies based in India and the UK to showcase international trade opportunities in London as part of a new India-UK Sports Alliance. The UK's Department for International Trade said the India-UK sports delegation will showcase opportunities for British sporting exporters during the ongoing 2019 Cricket World Cup in England. Latest data released by DIT shows exports of sporting goods to India increased by 30.6 per cent in 2018, with overall exports of British sporting equipment at an all-time high and rising by 10 per cent to 500 million pounds last year. The UK wants to be India's partner in delivering world class sporting events using our experience and expertise gained from delivering some of the biggest global sports events in the world, UK's Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox said. There are significant benefits of hosting large sporting events to local economies. By ...
Most elegant left-handed batsman India has produced, Akhtar on Yuvraj
Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar congratulated "good friend and rockstar" Yuvraj Singh on an illustrious career, saying the flamboyant cricketer was one of the most elegant left-handed batman India has produced. Yuvraj brought the curtains down on a roller-coaster international career, during which he became the hero of India's 2011 World Cup triumph and fought a gritty battle with cancer. "A rock-star, a match winner, a great junior and a very good friend of mine," Akhtar said on his YouTube channel. "I don't think India has produced a more elegant left-handed batsman than Yuvraj Singh. He used to play very fluently," he added. Yuvraj played 40 Tests, 304 ODIs and 58 T20Is for India. He totyalled 1900 runs in the longest format and 8701 in the ODIs, the format he enjoyed most success. His one-day runs tally places him 22nd in the overall list, and seventh among Indians. "I remember for the first time I played against him in 2003 in Centurion during the World Cup where he played a .
Aussies look to bounce back against in-form Pakistan (Preview) (Correction in 1st para)
Pakistan looked like a team stuck in a different era in their seven-wicket loss to the West Indies but they bounced back in the most unlikely fashion with a clinical 14-run win over hosts and tournament favourites England.
27 nations to take part in boxing C'ship in Indonesia
At least 300 boxers from 27 countries have confirmed their participation in an international boxing championship in Indonesia next month, the organisers said on Tuesday.
Pretending World Cup is not on: Hazlewood
Not part of Australia's World Cup squad, pacer Josh Hazlewood says he is trying to pretend the mega tournament is not taking place, rather focusing on the upcoming Ashes.
Indian men, women archery teams one win away from securing Olympic berths
Indian men's recurve team put up a solid show to go past Norway 5-1 and storm into the pre-quarterfinals at the World Archery Championships to be just one win away from securing an Olympic quota, here Tuesday. The trio of Tarundeep Rai, Pravin Jadhav and Atanu Das will next face Canada's Eric Peters, Crispin Duenas and Brian Maxwell on Wednesday in a bid to secure the three-athlete quotas for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. The women's recurve team also remained in the fray by qualifying sixth from a field of 55 nations for one of the eight Olympic quota spots. The top-eight seeding in the team event means that the Indian women avoid the first round match on Tuesday and go straight into a decider for the Olympic places where they face 11th seed Belarus Wednesday. Laishram Bombayla Devi shot 664 to top the leaderboard among the Indians to secure 15th place overall in the qualifications, while Deepika Kumari was next best at 22th spot with a score of 660. Komalika Bari shot 650 to be ...
Dhawan sustains thumb fracture, Cup future hangs in balance
In-form senior India opener Shikhar Dhawan was Tuesday ruled out of at least two World Cup matches after his left thumb was found to have a hairline fracture, dealing a major blow to one of the top title contenders at the showpiece. The team management was tight-lipped on a possible replacement, which may not even be called if the hairline fracture heals within two weeks. Dhawan will, however, miss the game against New Zealand on Thursday and the marquee clash against Pakistan on Sunday, a BCCI source told PTI. It remains to be seen if he regains fitness for the match against Afghanistan of June 22. Dhawan was the hero of India's win over Australia on Sunday with a knock of 117 off 109 balls. He played through pain after being hit on his left thumb by a rising delivery from pacer Nathan Coulter-Nile. He didn't take the field due to the injury during the clash and Ravindra Jadeja fielded in his place for the entire 50 overs. He underwent scans here in which the fracture came to ...
BCCI officials heap praises on Yuvraj Singh for his glittering career
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has congratulated all-rounder Yuvraj Singh for having a glittering career. Yuvraj announced his retirement at a press conference here on Monday.The all-rounder from Punjab is the only cricketer to have won the U19 World Cup, the 50-over World Cup and also the ICC World T20. The dashing left-hand batsman during his 17-year long international career played 40 Test matches, 304 ODIs and 58 T20Is for India.Yuvraj is only second Indian after Sachin Tendulkar to win the 'Man of the Tournament' awards in the ICC 50-over World Cup and also holds the world record for the fastest fifty across format and joint-fastest in T20I.He had lit up the Durban sky in 2007 ICC World T20 when he raced away to a half-century in just 12 balls against England including six 6s to Stuart Broad's over.Vinod Rai, CoA Chairman, CK Khanna, BCCI Acting president, Amitabh Choudhary, BCCI Acting Honorary Secretary, and Rahul Johri, BCCI CEO wished Yuvraj on his ...
Hardik Pandya can dominate 2019 World Cup, feels Waugh
Former Australia captain Steve Waugh has compared India all-rounder Hardik Pandya with former South Africa cricketer Lance Klusener and said that Pandya's ability to hit the ball cleanly is something to which no opposition team has any answer. The Australian great also felt Pandya has the ability to dominate the current edition of the World Cup.